OBJECTIVE To describe errors Canadian family physicians found in their practices and reported to study investigators. To compare errors reported by Canadian family physicians with those reported by physicians in five other countries. DESIGN Analytical study of reports of errors. The Linnaeus Collaboration was formed to study medical errors in primary care. General practitioners in six countri...

BACKGROUND This study reports on the number of graduates entering family medicine residencies in 2011 from allopathic, osteopathic, and international medical schools. Allopathic graduate data come from medical school registrars or the American Medical Association Masterfile. The 2012 family medicine residency program director census, with a response rate of 100%, verified residents who entered ...

PURPOSE There has been little research on the accessibility and quality of primary care services for epilepsy and emergency hospital admissions for epilepsy. METHODS We examined time trends in admissions for epilepsy in England between 2004-2005 and 2010, and the association of admission rates with population and primary care factors. The units of analysis were the registered populations of 8...

BACKGROUND The Scholars in Rural Health program is designed to attract and retain young rural Kansans with a high probability of successful careers in rural communities. This program shapes the students' experiences toward rural health in preparation for entry into medical school. Scholars accepted into and satisfactorily completing this program are admitted automatically to the School of Medic...

I would like to start by thanking the organisers and Federico for inviting me to offer comments on these five very interesting papers. To provide a framework for my comments, let me mention an ongoing initiative that is closely related to the main theme of this session. The European Central Bank and the national central banks composing the Eurosystem are currently collaborating on the design of...

An Address given to the Ulster Medical Society IT is unusual for a paper to a Medical Society to deal with a special branch of medical practice as a whole, instead of focussing upon a part. I have, however, decided to deal with the whole field of the practice of psychological medicine, in a general manner, by describing cases illustrating the different types of problem with which one is called ...

OBJECTIVE To develop a method of identifying patients at high risk of readmission to hospital in the next 12 months for practical use by primary care trusts and general practices in the NHS in England. DATA SOURCES Data from hospital episode statistics showing all admissions in NHS trusts in England over five years, 1999-2000 to 2003-4; data from the 2001 census for England. Population All re...

BACKGROUND Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major nosocomial pathogen. Indiscriminate and increased use of systemic antibiotics has led to the emergence of MRSA. Infected or colonized ward patients are the main reservoir of infection. Once colonized, the risk of subsequent local and systemic infections is high, especially in the elderly, and in debilitated and immunosuppr...

OBJECTIVE  To assess whether continuity of care with a general practitioner is associated with hospital admissions for ambulatory care sensitive conditions for older patients. DESIGN  Cross sectional study. SETTING  Linked primary and secondary care records from 200 general practices participating in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink in England. PARTICIPANTS  230 472 patients aged b...

Mainly in response to the policy drive to avoid unnecessary acute hospital admissions and delayed discharge on social grounds, there has been a gradual development of social work services attached to emergency departments (EDs) in the UK. In the absence of a clearly articulated evidence base or debate about the roles of ED attached social workers, a model of ED based social work practice and in...